Starfall
by Baka Gaijin30
Summary: Formerly Jubilee. AU. Whatever happened to Queen Nehelenia when Sailor Moon and the Senshi sent her back in time to her childhood? More importaintly, what's Galaxia doing in the Silver Millennia?
1. Chapter 1

-Starfall-

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of the Sailor Moon franchise, which is probably a good thing in more ways than one.

Author's Notes: This story contains spoilers for the finale of the Super S season and first seven episodes of Sailor Stars. Also, this is shoujo-ai, so if lesbianism offends you please read no further.

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-Prologue: Jubilee-

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The small princess ran to and fro out in the courtyard with an almost nervous energy as all around her preparations were being carried out and banners and balloons were hung up along with the flags of the royal houses. Tomorrow marked the one-hundred and first Jubilee, a day that began a week of celebrations set aside to commemorate the Moon Kingdom's victory over Beryl and the forces of Earth against overwhelming odds. But it was not that holiday which made tomorrow so special to the pink-haired child. After all, she was born well after the fact.

No, what she and the rest of the court were abuzz over was the _second_ big event to take place tomorrow; the hundredth wedding anniversary of her grandparents. And it was the anniversary more than the holiday that caused her and the rest of the kingdom to be joyous. And the whole court would be arriving between today and tomorrow, even her favorite Princesses, Pluto and Saturn. As she gazed wide-eyed at a group of artisans working on an ice-sculpture of her grandparents, a hand fell tenderly upon her head, ruffling her hair.

"So, here you are, eh?"

The girl turned around happily, "Momma, isn't it wonderful?" she asked, "Have you ever seen the court so pretty?"

Serenity II looked around at the flowers encircling the columns of the palace, the tents set up for the musicians who'd be performing for the festivities, the banquet tables and the large red and pink bows her daughter had put up everywhere and smiled as well. "No," she agreed, "I don't think I've ever seen the palace or the courtyard this beautiful before either."

"Momma?"

"Yes?"

"Well… Just how did my grandparents get together anyways?"

"Hmmm… Well, I suppose you're old enough now. Come," she said, taking her daughter's hand and leading her to a tall cherry tree. Sitting beneath its pink blossoms she drew the girl onto her lap. "To begin with, this story takes place right after Queen Beryl and the forces of Earth were defeated."

"Mom, you were there, weren't you?"

"Yes."

"Were you scared?"

"I was terrified, and so was your father, though you'll never hear him admit it," she added with a smile and a wink. "Now where was I? Oh yes, anyways, two days after the great battle the kingdom celebrated its very first Victory Day. Most of the Moon Kingdom was in ruins, but from what I can remember nobody seemed to care much. We were all too happy at the time to have survived. Anyways, in the ruins of the original palace, your Grandma Serenity organized a formal party for everyone, royalty and peasantry alike. And all attended and were happy. All except one…"

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The palace of the Dark Moon was still and silent, the only sounds coming from her heels striking the polished marble floor tiles as she walked out onto her balcony with a drink in her hand. All her subjects were out either on the other side of the moon or among the ruins of her own kingdom celebrating this first Jubilee in small family groups. They celebrated today both here and in the White Moon Kingdom with abandon, knowing full well that tomorrow would mark the beginning of the difficult rebuilding process.

She didn't like to be alone. In fact, she always tried to have others around her, to the point of setting up a separate bed for her chambermaid within her private bedroom. But today, she didn't feel she could bring herself to celebrate with others. She sat down on a chair next to a small table. Taking a sip of her drink, she heard a pair of familiar footsteps.

"Somehow I knew you'd find me," Nehelenia sighed before setting the rest of her drink down on the table next to her, "You always could, even when we played hide and go seek as children on diplomatic visits."

Queen Serenity looked with concern at the other woman, her shimmering white wings seeming to droop a bit out of a sense of unease as she came out onto the terrace. "Nehelenia, what's wrong? Why wouldn't you come for the celebration? And why would you choose to stay here alone?"

"I came here because I hoped you wouldn't find me," the Dark Queen admitted, staring at her glass in order to avoid eye contact with the beautiful woman gazing worriedly at her. "And because this was your celebration, yours and our peoples, not mine."

A pained expression fluttered across Serenity's face at that. She grabbed a second chair and, bringing it over, sat across from Nehelenia. "Nehelenia, how can you say such a thing? We could never have defeated the Earth's forces, or won the day against Beryl and Metaria, without your standing alongside Prince Endymion, my daughter and myself."

Nehelenia said nothing as she lowered her head, her bangs hiding her eyes as Queen Serenity leaned closer. "Was it… Was it the kiss?" Serenity now asked, lowering her voice as she took the Dark Queen's hands in her own, "If it was, I'm sorry. I was carried away with the moment I suppose, and I suppose I've had certain… _feelings_ for you for a while now. But if you don't feel that way for me…"

"Serenity," the Dark Queen interrupted, "We've been friends since childhood, ever since I first visited you and your Kingdom in the hopes of establishing more friendly relations between our two lands. We've become almost like sisters, and no one could ever ask for a dearer or sweeter friend than you. But… But there are things about me, and about my past, that you don't know about."

"Your past? Nehelenia, what do you mean?"

The Queen of the New Moon looked up at Serenity, her eyes welling up with tears. "Serenity, I don't deserve to be loved," she said, her heart breaking as she began to tell the tale of an evil narcissistic queen whose only friend was her mirror, and who was so desperate to be beautiful forever that she stole the dreams of her subjects, turning them into mindless zombies. She told of a good Queen of the Full Moon who banished the evil queen into the mirror, and of how the evil queen retaliated with a curse upon the White Moon Kingdom, a curse that came to fruition with the end of the Silver Millennium.

She also told of a Pegasus, a circus, a beautiful princess, and of how the vengeful queen took delight after finally being freed from her prison in torturing both the princess and her friends and loved ones in front of her. Finally, she told of the unexpected mercy of the princess, of a magic born of love and sympathy that resulted in a return to childhood and a second chance.

"I've tried," she sobbed, shaking as she once more avoided Serenity's gaze, "To change. I've made friends this time, both in my own court and in yours. I've done all that I could to erase my crimes of the past, but they're still there. I helped to save the Silver Millennium this time, but it was my curse that brought about its destruction the first time around. I… I'm plagued by nightmares of the monster I once was, to the point where I suffer insomnia most nights. I try my best to avoid mirrors, and I try to always be among others so that I'll never be alone again…" finally, her voice failed her as she closed her eyes tightly, shrinking before what she was sure would be the angry, hateful words her childhood friend was sure to now unleash upon her.

No words of anger came. Instead, Serenity looked with sympathy upon her fellow queen and friend, never once letting go of Nehelenia's's hand all throughout the story. "Nehelenia, I'm sorry. I never knew, never had any idea that you were dealing with anything like this. But," she said as she reached over to cup the side of her friend's face, "But you are no longer the monster you spoke of; you're no longer a narcissist willing to steal others dreams or hurt innocent people to perpetuate your beauty. You're my friend, my closest and dearest friend since we were little girls, and you fought alongside me and my court when all seemed lost. I trust you with my life, and with that of my daughter and our subjects."

Neherenia looked up into her friend's clear blue eyes, "Serenity, what if… What if I should go back to what I was?"

"If you close off love and hope from your heart, you're more in danger of backsliding than if you open yourself and let me in. Please," she pleaded, her own eyes now watering as her voice broke, "Let me in. Let me love you, please," she whispered as she now leaned forward. The Dark Queen could feel her friend's breath against her face, and as she closed her eyes and tilted her head she felt Serenity's soft lips press against her own. Fear and regret melted as both queens deepened the kiss, and as she opened her heart to her friend a pair of glistening black wings, every bit as large and beautiful as Serenity's, sprouted forth from Nehelenia's back.

----

"Wow…" little Usagi whispered, the pink-haired girl looking wide-eyed up at her mother, "And then what happened?"

"And then," a voice interrupted, "They all lived happily ever after. Well, all except for the poor tailor who had to fix the rips and tears in the back of my gown when my wings popped out."

"Grammy," Usagi shouted joyfully, jumping up from her moms lap as she ran to embrace her Grandma Nehelenia. The older woman kneeled down, allowing the youngster to wrap her arms around her neck and bury her face in her hair now lightly peppered with white and grey streaks, "Grammy, momma was just…"

"Yes, I heard," Nehelenia said as she scooped the child up, "Now come; your father and your other grandmother are looking for you, as well as someone else…"

"You mean, Puu and Saturn?"

Nehelenia nodded her head, "Just arrived in fact. They're in the west wing of the palace," she said as she set the little princess down, "Go on, your mom and I'll catch up to you."

Young Usagi hugged her grandmother once more around the waist before turning to run through the courtyard towards the palace. Alone with Serenity II, Nehelenia rubbed her lower back. "Good grief, where did the time go?" she asked as she and her stepdaughter slowly followed after the energetic girl, "I can remember when I could pick up that girl with ease. Now look at us," she said as she rested a hand on the other woman's shoulder for support, "She's so big now than pretty soon neither I nor your mother will be able to pick her up anymore. Let me tell you," she said, turning to Serenity II with a sardonic smile, "The golden years aren't so golden on the back."

"Why Nehelenia-mama," Serenity II teased, "It almost sounds as if, given the chance, you'd try for eternal youth again."

Nehelenia looked taken aback, "What, and give up all this?" she asked as her wife came into view waiting for them at the palace door, "Never."

Queens Nehelenia and Serenity hugged each other warmly before walking hand in hand back into the large marble palace, Serenity II smiling happily at them both as she followed them inside.

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End Notes: Thanks go to Shanejayell for encouraging me to pursue this story.


	2. Chapter 2

-Starfall-

Disclaimer: I don't own any of it.

Author's Notes: For lainofthewired, who suggested it.

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-I-

The sun hung high in the afternoon sky as the crowds continued to gather out onto the grassy hillside, lured by word of mouth and the promise of a goodly entertainment. Patrons traveled throughout the audience selling foodstuffs wrapped in palm leaves and water for those who'd remembered to bring their small clay drinking jars with them. Neither the wind rustling around them, nor the birds above or the fireflies and insects going about their business could draw the people's attention away from the beige curtain drawn up by a strong rope between two large elms at the bottom of the small hill. The hillside itself was slightly curved inward, making for a natural amphitheater. They waited restlessly for the performers to step out from the curtain to perform. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and this promised to be a show all would look back upon fondly for seasons yet to come.

Behind the curtain, in the fancy and colorful dress of male traveling minstrels were three young women, one of whom, holding her tambourine tightly in hand, chanced to look out from behind the curtain. Behind her, a second one was meticulously inspecting the stops on her flute as the third one, a blonde, adjusted the tuning knobs of her twelve string mandolin. She stopped, looking to the woman still glancing out at the growing crowd. "Can we find her?" she asked, her voice betraying a certain note of sadness.

"Don't worry!" the troubadour holding the tambourine said impulsively, her jet black hair pulled back into a ponytail swung behind her as she turned to face the blond, "That's why we came here."

"We'll definitely find her," the third said in a more conciliatory tone as she looked up from the flute to meet the blonde's eyes.

"Taiki is right," Seiya said as she tightened her grip on the tambourine, "Even if we sacrifice everything... Now, let's go!" she said, holding back the edge of the curtain as she nodded with her head towards the audience in attendance out on the grass, "It's time..." A few seconds later, the crowd clapped wildly as the three minstrels stepped out from behind the curtain.

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_The small child lay asleep in her bed, snuggled up into a ball beneath her comforter. After the long day of visits, meetings and ambassadors, the girl was worn out. The day would've been unbearably boring for the poor girl if it wasn't for her new friend. The other girl was shy and a bit introverted at first, but soon enough she opened up and they spent the afternoon playing dress up with their dolls and making each other crowns of flowers out in the garden as their advisors and adjutants, taking the girls' lead, worked out friendly relations treaties between their lands._

_The day had been a strange mixture of fun and boredom, and both she and her new friend had decided to turn in early. And as she lay peacefully in her bed, a visitor silently crept in and jumped onto her bed._

_"Serenity," a small voice said._

_The girl reluctantly opened her eyes, looking at the little kitten crouched next to her with annoyance. "Luna," she whined, "It's not morning yet. Why'd you wake me?"_

_"I think something's wrong with Princess Nehelenia," the kitten responded._

_"Nehelenia-chan?" Serenity asked as she now sat up, her hair combed out of their usual odangos and her little nightgown loosely covering her. Out of concern for her new friend she crawled out of bet and scampered off to the guest room, the polished floor cold beneath her tiny bare feet. As she finally reached the door, she could hear a small whimpering sound from inside the room._

_"Nehelenia-chan?" the little princess whispers, "Nehelenia, what's wrong?" she asked as she slowly entered the room. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she suddenly saw her new friend on her bed, tossing and turning as she cried in her sleep. "Nehelenia-chan," Serenity said as she shook the girl's shoulder, "Wake up!"_

_The dark-haired princess opened her eyes; a tear fell down her cheek as she sat up and looked at her fellow princess. Serenity climbed into her bed with her and hugged her close as the girl now wept upon her shoulder._

_"Shhh," she whispered, "It was just a bad dream. Everything's all right now, honest." As she held the little princess, an idea struck her. "Nehelenia-chan, would it make you feel better if I stayed here with you tonight?"_

_The Princess of the New Moon looked up at her and shyly smiled as she nodded her head. Serenity turned over the pillow so that the tear-stained side faced down. The two lay facing one another. "There now," Serenity whispered as she took Nehelenia's hands in her own, "Now I'll be here to help Nehelenia-chan face her bad dreams. And if you need me again, just give my hands a squeeze."_

_Nehelenia smiled, showing off a cute pair of dimples. "Thank you, Serenity-Chan," she whispered back, giving her friend's tiny hands a small squeeze._

**"Serenity, wake up!"**

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Queen Serenity opened her eyes to find herself sitting in her favorite rocking chair up on a third-story terrace of the palace next to her wife, who was at the moment smirking at her. "What?" she asked with a yawn.

"You were dozing off again."

"I was resting my eyes," Serenity said, "I don't, 'doze off.'"

Nehelenia chuckled. "Now you're sounding like your daughter," she teased. "So, what were you thinking about as you were 'resting your eyes?'"

Serenity closed her eyes and smiled wistfully, "Childhood," she answered, opening her eyes again to smile at her wife. "Just feeling a bit nostalgic, I guess."

"I see," Nehelenia said, "Well, if you're done dreaming of the past, here in the present the last of our stragglers have arrived. Confirmation arrived from the observatory not fifteen minutes ago and... Ah," she said, pointing to what looked like a red shooting star hurtling towards the protective dome surrounding the Moon Kingdom, "Here she is now."

Down at a small receiving area outside the dome, a group of palace guards and dignitaries stood watching as the red streak sped ever closer before slowing down suddenly and, in a brilliant flash of crimson light, landed. Once the spots caused by the burst stopped flickering in front of the onlookers' eyes, all present bowed respectfully at the waist before the woman now standing before them. She wore the traditional red hooded priestly vestments of her sacred office, tied about the waist with a crimson sash. As the sacred priestess stepped forward, she raised her hand up and, in a sweeping motion with her henshin wand in her hand she blessed the guards, servants and ambassadors alike as they joined their hands together.

A slender woman in a shining yellow gown stepped out from the crowd. The blonde likewise joined her hands together as the priestess now blessed her as well. "Your Holiness," she said as she then walked over to her, "You're a bit tardy."

"Lady Venus," the raven-haired oracle said as she pulled her hood back, "My apologies to you and our fellow royals, but it couldn't be helped. I was detained by the sacred flames within Phobos-Deimos Castle."

"Indeed?" Princess Venus asked as they both began to head for the entrance to the city, "And what does Her Holiness see within the fires?"

"I'm not sure," Princess Mars admitted, "All is to go well with today's celebration, and then after things seem to get blurry, as if obscured by clouds or looked at through a fishbowl. About the only thing I can positively make out is that the second to the throne, Serenity II, will play a major role in whatever is about to occur."

"Serena?" Venus asked, using the Moon Princess' common nickname.

The Princess-oracle of Mars nodded her head, "As you are the leader of the Inner Court, I felt it to be my duty to share this with you as soon as possible."

Venus looked at her friend and fellow princess with concern; just as the four princesses of the Outer Court were given the duty of protecting the solar system from outside invasion, the Inner Court were sworn to protect Princess Serenity II. They were more than simply the rulers of their home worlds; they were bodyguards, and as the leader of the Inner Court Venus didn't like was she was being told one bit. If something was going to happen to the next in line to the throne, she wanted to know what. "Thank you," she said finally, "I'll inform Ladies Mercury and Jupiter, and the four of us will have to remain on alert. After all, better safe than to keep the doctor away."

Princess Mars smirked. Entering the palace grounds, she waved her henshin wand over herself, and her robes disappeared in a bright red flash of light as a scarlet gown materialized around her.

With the arrival of Mars, all the members of the royal court were now assembled. It was the first time they'd all been together in the same place at the same time since the war against Queen Beryl and Metaria, and while Mars and Venus strode through the gates to the cheering of the assembled subjects and guests, elsewhere within the palace itself a woman stood warily before a mirror in her guest room, trying one last time to get her less than manageable hair to stay down. She wore a polished bronze breastplate over her chest and abdomen, and a skirt of chain mail hung down to her calves. The ochre-colored leather bindings of her leggings wound up to just below her knees, and at her side, safely housed within its scabbard next to the leather strap from which she hung her henshin wand, was her battle-tested Space Sword.

Allowing a disgruntled grumble to escape her throat, she licked her fingers in the hopes of using her own spittle to keep the last few cow licks down. She stopped when the familiar scent of rose water and lilacs reached her nostrils, smiling as a pair of slender arms reached around to embrace her from behind.

"Uranus," a tender voice asked, "Why aren't you dressed yet? You're still wearing your Uranian armor?"

The warrior turned around, reaching up to stroke her fellow princess' face. "Neptune," she said in a husky voice as she took in the smaller princess in her sea-green gown, "I can't remember ever seeing you more lovely, and..."

"Oh no you don't," Neptune interrupted with a smirk, "Don't try to change the subject."

"Well... My hair..."

"Is only a stalling tactic and we both know it."

With that, the princess from the warrior planet near the outskirts of the solar system frowned. "Do I... Do I really have to wear it?"

Neptune crossed her arms. "Pluto has already assured us that she sees nothing happening during the duration of the celebration ceremony, and the palace has plenty of guards already. They simply wish you to dress more like a princess than a man-at-arms for a bit. It's only for a short duration, and it'll make Queens Serenity and Neherenia so happy. Besides," she added with a smirk, "You're the one who told me the Uranian parable of the mother who killed her own cowardly son for receiving a wound in the back during battle. Now stop trying to run and avoid this and face it straight on like a princess of Uranus should."

Uranus nodded reluctantly and, with a sigh of resignation, took up her henshin wand. In a blaze of light she stood before her lover and fellow princess in a dark blue spaghetti-strapped evening gown which reached down to the floor.

Neptune smiled warmly as she came closer, "You look quite striking in a gown, you know," she said as she wrapped her arms around her.

"Indeed?" Uranus asked as she leaned closer to her fellow princess. They would've kissed then and there, if it wasn't for the sound of jingling coming up from the hallway outside the room. The two lovers had just enough time to separate before Lady Pluto entered the room, her black gown hugging every curve of her statuesque frame. She wore a black choker and a pair of shimmering black gloves that ended just above her elbows. Around her waste, her chain of keys hung heavily from her hips, and she held her time-staff resting against her shoulder. "It is time," she said in her usual soft voice, adding with a raised eyebrow "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"No, of course not," Haruka said, "Thank you."

The Guardian of the Gates of Time nodded her head before turning to leave. "Does she have to be so mysterious?" Neptune whispered out of the corner of her mouth.

"She's Pluto," Uranus said with a shrug, "It's her job to be mysterious. You go on ahead; I just have something to check on before joining up with you."

"Very well, but don't keep us waiting too long."

Lady Uranus watched her lover leave. Assured that she was alone in the room, she pulled up the hem of her gown, smiling smugly as she saw that her laced leggings were still comfortably in place where nobody would be able to see them. She let her dress once more droop down to the polished floor and followed after Neptune.

As she wandered through the hallway, surrounded by frescoes and marble columns, Uranus saw one of the other guestroom doors open. The woman she saw emerge from the room was something of a walking contradiction; from her moon surrounding her giant and gaseous home world, where the severity of gravity and necessities of evolution caused its inhabitants to grow taller than elsewhere in the solar system, she was considered somewhat diminutive, almost a runt. Yet here, within the palace, she stood taller than anyone in the Inner Court, as well as both Princesses Neptune and Saturn of the Outer Court. As she adjusted her dark-green gown, she noticed Uranus walking up to her and smiled.

"Lady Uranus," Princess Jupiter said as she bowed her head, "You look good in a dress."

Uranus rolled her eyes as she mumbled something under her breath. Princess Jupiter either took no notice of her fellow royal's reaction or simply chose not to pursue the matter. After all, Lady Uranus was an Outer, and it was an Outer's job to be aloof and mysterious. She was happy to know that she wasn't the only straggler though, and as she walked alongside Uranus she almost thought she caught the blonde sneaking a peek at her cleavage.

The two of them reached the end of the long hallway together, where a palace servant opened the door to the two princesses, both of whom were taken off guard by the deafening noise that greeted them as they stepped through the portal out onto a fourth-story terrace. The others were all present already, and as Uranus stepped over towards Neptune and Jupiter walked over to stand next to Princess Mercury, dressed in a light blue dress that trailed behind her, the dome lit up with fireworks as the planetary banners were run up nine flagpoles beneath the terrace.

All assembled from both the New and White Moon Kingdoms shouted and clapped as loudly as they were capable, the sound reverberating and trembling through the Princesses as they smiled, waved and tossed flowers and colored streamers out to the multitude. As the celebrations officially began within the dome in the Mare Serenitatis region of the moon, hundreds of thousands of miles outside the solar system on an oblong hunk of rock roughly three kilometers long, a gathering of an entirely different kind was taking place.

"I feel it!" an ominous voice said, her eyes narrowing as she instinctually clenched her fists, "The energy of ever-shining stars; true Star Seeds! On the small white satellite of that blue shining planet, there are still lots of sleeping Star Seeds. Find them!" the voice ordered, "Go and get the Star Seeds... in order to dominate all the galaxies!"

With that, five bright streaks of light took off, headed for the small moon orbiting the third planet around the medium-sized yellow star. It would take them at least a day to travel the distance, during which they were to avoid any of the outlying planets of the solar system. This was to be a sneak-attack, and the last thing the being wanted was for any of their home worlds to warn them and split them up.

Besides, if the Senshi of this system were stupid enough to make things easier for her by all gathering together in one place at one time for her, all the better.

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Several hours had gone by, during which all who attended had a good time (even Uranus). As the first-day of festivities finally began to wind down, Endymion stepped out of the palace and strolled over to a waterfall, allowing a yawn to escape him as he looked up at the Earth through the dome.

"I see I'm not the only one tired out by today's merriment."

Endymion turned around and smiled. "Princess Mercury, I didn't see you there."

The young lady walked out of the shadows, "My Lord," she asked, "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

Prince Endymion sighed. Tomorrow the Earth would be throwing its own version of the Jubilee, celebrating their release from slavery under Queen Beryl and the union of the Earth and Moon Kingdoms between himself and his wife Serenity II. For some the celebration was a source of tension; by celebrating a "release from slavery," the Earth in fact was trying to distance itself from any implications of complicity or support in Queen Beryl's campaign, a stance seen as fraudulent and cowardly by many within the court.

To complicate things further, there were small and radical groups of separatists scattered throughout planet Earth who disapproved of the holiday and argued against Earth even being a member of the court. The main source of discontent for many of the radicals was the incredibly long lifespan of those within the court, which they saw as unnatural and were jealous of.

"Yes," he finally said, adding "My wife will travel with you and the rest of the Princesses of the Inner Court, as well as Serenity's two councilors Luna and Artemis, tomorrow morning to a small island nation in the Pacific which won the right to host the celebration in a contest held last year. My daughter and I will head to Eurasia and, from there, to the other land masses to appease the other peoples of the Earth. The Queens will of course stay here with their people and the Outers throughout the week-long holiday, at the end of which we will all return here to say our goodbyes."

Mercury looked away from the Prince to gaze with him at the blue planet. "Do you ever think of them?" she asked, "The Guardians?"

"The Shittenou? Occasionally. I wish I could've done more to foresee their treason, perhapse have intervened before things went too far. But in the end Kunzite and the others were fully aware of what they were doing when they sold their souls to the Dark Kingdom, and..."

"Ah, Prince Endymion, here you are."

Endymion and Mercury turned around to see Queen Nehelenia walking over with Lady Saturn, the Mistress of Death was wearing a dark-purple gown and holding her Silence Glaive over her shoulder. Princess Mercury curtseyed to the Queen before taking her leave. The Queen of the New Moon watched her leave, and then turned back to the prince. "Endymion, Lady Saturn has shared something of interest that I think you should hear."

"Indeed?" the prince asked.

Lady Saturn nodded, "Lord, roughly six months ago there was a disturbance in the outer asteroid region of the solar system. A group of space debris was knocked out of its normal orbit by a comet that passed near enough to exert a gravitational force on some of the asteroids and meteors outside of Pluto's orbit. Lady Pluto herself was guarding the Gates of Time, so Ladies Neptune, Uranus and I handled it. It was only a minor disturbance, only..."

"Only she thinks she saw something out there," Nehelenia interrupted.

"Saw something?" Endymion asked.

"Three somethings, actually," Saturn explained, "While I was redirecting a planetoid, I thought I saw three rays of light streaking past out of the corner of my eye. I was unable to check on it until I'd finished with the space rock, and by then they were gone. I'd assumed that either Uranus or Neptune would've taken care of whatever it was, but when I asked later Lady Uranus said she never saw the beams of light, while Neptune said she only saw one beam. When I questioned her further though, it came to light that the beam she saw took place about one Earth hour before I saw my three."

Endymion looked from Lady Saturn to Queen Nehelenia, "I think I'm failing to see the significance here," he admitted.

"Prince," Nehelenia said in a hushed tone, "The beams were headed for

Earth."

Prince Endymion furrowed his brow, "Earth? But as far as I can tell there's been no sort of outside menace to reach Earth within the last six months, certainly no strange beams of light..."

"Are you sure?" Saturn asked, a note of concern in her voice, "After all, tomorrow your daughter, your wife and yourself..."

"Yes, I assure you; no suspicious extraterrestrial activity has taken place upon the Earth within the last six months. My wife will have the Inner Court, and my daughter will have me to guard her. I assure you, I'd be the first to cancel tomorrow's appointments if I perceived any danger."

"In that case," Nehelenia said, "Let us keep this matter to ourselves for now. Be on your guard though, after all it's my granddaughter you'll be traveling with."

"Of course, Nehelenia-Sama," Endymion said with a bow. Once Neherenia and Saturn left him alone again, he stared out at his home planet for a few minutes more before turning to go back into the palace to join the other royals.

------

The next morning, two combatants stared intensely at one another, neither one willing to give nor ask quarter from the other. Finally, after several tense moments of back and forth action, one of them makes their move. It is a fatal error, one which her opponent quickly seizes upon.

"Thanks for the three of clubs," Usagi says cheerfully, snatching the card up into her eager hands, "Gin!"

"What, again?" Serenity II asked in disbelief, "That's three times in a row."

"Now, now," Queen Serenity chided as she came over and put a consoling hand on her daughter's shoulder, "It's only a game, remember?"

"I know," she conceded, "I just wish I won once in a while."

"Serena," Venus said as she entered the room, "It is time."

A few minutes later, the Inner Court (along with Imperial Advisors Luna and Artemis) waited outside the dome as Serenity II hugged her mother and stepmother goodbye. She then quickly went to her daughter who was in Endymion's arms and kissed them both warmly.

"It'll only be for a week," her husband assured her, "We won't be able to really talk until we come back, but we won't stop thinking about you."

"Or I you," the princess assured them. The three shared a quick group hug before Serena joined her guardians, and as the five princesses joined hands a small whirlwind seemed to gather about them. In a flash of light they were gone.

Endymion then turned to Queens Serenity and Nehelenia. "We'll be back before you know it," he assured.

"Take care of yourself," Serenity said with a smile. Nehelenia nodded her head next to her, her demeanor a bit graver.

"Any sign of trouble, you get Serena and come back," she said, "Promise."

Endymion nodded his head as he held Usagi close to him. In a flash of dark blue light, he shot up from the surface of the moon on his way to Earth. He and his daughter were two-thirds of the way to the prince's home world, when Usagi looked up and thought she saw several streaks, looking almost like shooting stars, flying towards both Earth and the Moon.

Suddenly, one of the shooting stars changed direction, its golden tail dragging far behind it. "Papa," Princess Usagi asked nervously as the streak headed straight for them, "What's that?"

King Endymion had just enough time to turn his head to look before a blinding flash of golden-yellow light engulfed him and his daughter.

------

The three women traveled to the next town via the well-worn dirt path, tall grass shooting up all around them and the gray cloud cover above them threatening rain as the blonde steering the wagon suddenly let out a pained gasp and dropped the horses' reigns from her hands.

"Yaten!" Seiya asked in alarm as she rushed to her side, "Yaten, what's wrong?"

Yaten looked at her fellow performer and traveler with a haunted expression. "Two more lights of stars have just disappeared," she whispered.

Seiya exchanged a worried look with Taiki before looking back at Yaten. "Did they do it?" she asked. Yaten looked straight into her eyes as she nodded her head.

"In such a situation, I wish she would've been here..." Taiki admitted.

"Or..." Seiya muttered, "She might be very close to us..."

Yaten sat herself back up and took back the reigns to the carriage . "We have to hurry," she said determinedly

Seiya nodded, "We don't have much time left." The carriage once more took the three bards up the path as they passed a crude wooden road sign announcing that they were entering their next stop, the Azabu Juban district.

-To Be Continued-

End Notes: Thanks go to Shanejayell for the suggestion of having the Three Lights as a trio of bards.


	3. Chapter 3

-Starfall-

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of the Sailor Moon franchise, which is probably a good thing in more ways than one.

Author's Notes: In case anyone's wondering why I'm having the action on Earth take place in Edo instead of Tokyo like it did in the original series, there's a very simple answer to that: they're both the same place. This story takes place in the past, and prior to the Meiji era the capitol of Japan was Kyoto, and Edo was a port city most famous for being the residence of the Shogun. Emperor Meiji moved the capital to Edo during his reign and renamed the city Tokyo (Eastern Capital). Since none of that happened until the nineteenth century though (long after the Silver Millennium), it's Edo for this story.

Also, this story will take place during the Jomon Period (14000 BCE to 300 BCE), long before the rise of the Shogun.

--

-II-

Lord Umino Gurio was a nervous wreck.

In a contest of physical skill held a year earlier, the Islands of Japan won the right to host Princess Serenity II and the Princesses of the Inner Court. Later, much to the consternation of the Emperor of Japan in Kyoto, the Moon Kingdom asked that he allow a drawing to take place to see where in Japan the second to the royal throne of the great Moon Kingdom would stay.

The lot fell upon Edo, a port city known for its trade and fishing as well as its militarily strategic position. As the daimyo, the feudal lord of the commercial city, the heavy responsibility for entertaining and housing the princesses fell upon Gurio's shoulders. The near-sighted young man nervously stood outside the small castle his family left him, hoping its diminutive size wouldn't be seen as insulting to his imperial visitors. As one of his advisors informed him that the sun dial signaled the time was near, he visibly began to shake.

"Gurio dear, calm down," his wife Naru said as she put a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Everything will be alright, you'll see." She smiled reassuringly as the sun hit the green bow in her auburn hair.

"I... I hope so. But what if they're not used to sleeping on mats like we are? I hear there are lands in which people sleep on cushions that stand above the ground, and eat at tall tables with chairs rather than on tables close to the floor, and..." he was cut off as a bright glowing light appeared before his wife and himself. Shortly thereafter, Princess Serenity II and her guardians, the princesses of the Inner Court, appeared. Gurio and his wife, as well as his advisors, stared in awe at the beautiful princess who, as second in line to the throne, carried with her the symbol of her royalty, the Spiral Heart Moon Rod. Her clothes were shining white, and her beautiful blue eyes had a kindly look to them. The royal crescent moon mark was plainly present on her forehead, and at her feet stood her advisors, Luna and Artemis.

From behind the beautiful princess, the vested Priestess oracle of Mars stepped forward, bowed respectfully to the daimyo and his wife, both of whom reverently bowed their heads and joined their hands together as she blessed them both. Mars then stepped back to join the other princesses behind Serenity II.

The young Gurio was speechless; never before had he seen such beauty, or such high nobility. A tap on his shoulder from Naru brought him back to reality. "Ah, um... Most noble Princess Serenity, I'm Umino Gurio, and my wife Naru and I..."

"Is that where you live?" the princess asked, inadvertently interrupting the nervous lord.

"Um, yes my princess."

"Your castle is so small..." she muttered, quickly adding "I _love_ it!"

"Really?" Gurio asked, the corners of his mouth beginning to turn upward in relief.

Serenity II nodded her head with a smile, "It's adorable; it's just like a little dollhouse, only it's big enough to live in. My daughter would have loved to have seen it too, I'm sure."

Naru bowed, "You honor us, Serenity-sama."

"Please," the princess said, "Call me Serena, everybody else does. Oh," she gasped as she came over and put her hand on the sleeve of Naru's dress, "This material is so beautiful."

"Thank you... Serena," Naru said with a slight blush, "It's called 'silk.'"

"Really? Well, let's go inside this cute little castle of yours and you can tell me all about it. By the way, is your husband ill?"

"No, your highness," Naru answered truthfully, "He's simply nervous."

"He shouldn't be," Serena said cheerfully as she smiled at Naru, "After all, I have the feeling that we're all going to be great friends, don't you?" turning back, the princess waved to Gurio, "Gurio-sama, aren't you going to give me a tour of your lovely home?"

"Huh?" he asked, still taken off guard by the princess' friendly and familiar tone, "Oh, right! Of course!" he said as he ran after the princess and his wife.

Looking on, Luna allowed a chuckle, "That's our Serena," she said, "Not here even five minutes and already she's best friends with the local daimyo and his wife."

"I'd call her a master diplomat," Artemis observed, "Except it isn't diplomacy with her, it's simply the way she is." The two cats followed their princess, and the four members of the Inner court followed after them. Finally, Lord Gurio's servants brought up the rear, the last one making sure to close the door to the castle behind him.

--

Pluto stood silently before the Eternity Main System, the advanced supercomputer housed within the palace of the Moon Kingdom. She closed her eyes and allowed her shoulders to slump as she leaned her head against her time staff. Hundreds of years from now, on a small island nation on Earth, a poet and playwright would make the observation that all the world's a stage, and all it's men and women merely players. Lady Pluto already knew that though, just as she knew of the grand performance about to take place. It was her responsibility, and her curse, to be the Guardian of the Time Gate.

It wasn't so much that she was just acting out a prewritten script that upset Pluto at times like these, but rather the burden of knowing what was coming, of having the script itself memorized by heart and lacking the ability to alter or stop the performance. Act one was already playing out; Serena and the Inner Court were on Earth, Endymion and Usagi were gone, and she and the others left on the Moon were blissfully enjoying the week of celebrations. It was the knowledge of what lay ahead in the next few acts of the drama about to play out that made her stomach sink.

As she continued to stand before the supercomputer, lost in her thoughts, she was joined by Luna and Artemis' daughter Diana. The small grey kitten looked at the Princess with concern. "Pluto-sama, is everything alright?" she asked, "You look sad."

"I can't talk about it," the statuesque princess muttered, her dark green bangs casting a shadow over her closed eyes.

"Why not? Sometimes it helps to share your troubles with another, like Princess Usagi does with me. If it's because you're afraid of my telling others your secrets..."

"No," she responded, barely paying any attention whatsoever to what she was saying, "It's because it hasn't happened yet."

Diana tilted her head at the response, "What? Pluto-sama, I don't understand. What hasn't happened yet?"

"The warning," she whispered.

"Warning? What warning?"

"The warning that hasn't happened yet. The one the Eternity Main Frame will send out."

The kitten began to grow concerned. "Pluto-sama, if there's to be a warning, then we'd best tell everybody right away!" she declared.

Princess Pluto finally opened her eyes and, seeing the tiny grey kitten at her feet, smiled. "Tell them?" she asked as she bent down to look closer at young Usagi's advisor, "Tell them what?"

"Of the danger facing the kingdom."

Pluto raised an eyebrow, "What danger?"

Diana looked up at Pluto in disbelief. "What danger? The Eternity Main System..."

"The Eternity Main System hasn't warned us of any danger," she said with a bemused expression, "You can see for yourself that everything's normal. What are you going on about?"

"But it will. You just said..."

"As I recall," Pluto interrupted, "All I said was that I couldn't talk about what was bothering me because it hadn't happened yet."

"But... But if you know what it is that is going to happen..."

"How can I know if it has yet to happen?"

The thoroughly confused kitten looked up at Lady Pluto for a few seconds before shaking her head and walking away. As the Keeper of the Gates of Time watched the befuddled feline wander off, she allowed a melancholy sigh to escape. She turned to leave, heading for the garden. She would shortly run into Saturn, and soon after that the two would innocently wander into the greenhouse together and catch Uranus and Neptune in an intimate embrace. There would be teasing followed by laughter, after which all four would head back inside the palace for tea.

Princess Pluto turned off the light, shut the door behind her, and headed for the garden.

--

The two women and the cat walked side by side down the stone path to the bottom of the hill, Naru smiling and nodding away as Princess Serenity continued to talk away about how beautiful and green everything was here. She didn't act anything like Naru would've expected, there was no air of stuffiness or self-importance about her. Rather, she was remarkably down to earth, sincere, and friendly.

"Sereni... Sorry, Serena-sama," Naru corrected herself, "Are you sure your guardians don't mind staying behind while we're out here?"

"Of course not," the princess responded, "If they're needed, I can call upon them. Besides," she said with a wink, "I've been known to defend myself in a fight when necessary."

"True," Luna spoke up, "But I still wish you'd at least brought Lady Venus with you."

Princess Serenity was about to respond, when Naru turned happily to her and pointed at a small stone bridge ahead of them, "We're here." As the three reached the middle of the bridge, they looked over its side to see gold, white, and multi-colored koi fish swimming about in the shallow waters.

"Oh, Naru-chan," Serenity gasped, "They're beautiful."

Naru found herself blushing a bit at being referred to by -chan, usually only used between close friends, rather than the honorifics -san or –sama that protocol would've called for. As Usagi continued to watch the large fish swim around, the auburn-haired lady of the castle looked questioningly over to the imperial advisor.

Luna simply smiled back. "It's okay," the cat reassured, "She likes you."

Naru relaxed a bit at hearing that, and pulled out two small leather sacks filled with bits of food to feed the fish with. She passed one to Serenity, and watched as the princess squealed with joy at the way the fish swam around trying to catch the food. Her laughter was infectious, and soon she found herself giggling along with the princess. Soon however, the fish food ran out.

"Don't worry," Naru said, "Wait here and I'll go get us some more from the castle."

"Alright," Serenity responded with a smile, adding, "Hurry back though."

As Naru left, Princess Serenity's smile faded a bit. "Serena?" Luna asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she answered a bit wistfully, "Just missing Endymion and Usagi, I guess."

Luna leapt onto the stone railing of the bridge, "I understand, I miss my little Diana too. Your mom and Neherenia-mama probably are missing you too right now."

Serena nodded her head, "Comes with the territory of being a mother, I guess." She was lost in her thoughts, staring off at the koi swimming below her. As she continued to watch absently, a shadow passed across the water and someone stepped up next to her. The princess quickly smiled once again, "You're back with more food already?" she asked happily as she turned to face her new friend, "Good, we can..." her voice died off as she realized it wasn't Naru at all, but a young man with jet-black hair pulled back into a long ponytail and wearing the distinctive garb of a traveling bard. "Oh! Hello."

"Hello yourself," the brash young man said with a smile. Looking over her white dress and her golden hair pulled up into odangos, he guessed her to be a foreigner. "So, have you traveled far to hear us?"

Princess Serenity looked perplexed, "I don't understand, who are you?"

The bard was taken aback, "Y... You mean you don't know of me, or my fellow performers? We're staying here in this province for a while to perform, haven't you heard anything of it?" taking her blank expression for a "no," he frowned, "I guess we're not as popular as I thought," he muttered.

Suddenly, Serenity smirked at the youth. "Oh, now I understand," she said, "This must be a new way of approaching girls. Young man, I'm a wife and mother, to say nothing of the fact I'm several years your senior, and..." she was cut off by the young man's laughter.

"You're funny," he said as he turned to leave. Walking off the bridge, he called over his shoulder, "See you later, dumpling."

Princess Serenity began to seethe, "Did you hear that?" she snapped at Luna, "What impertinence! Nobody outside of Endymion has ever had the nerve to call me 'dumpling.'"

As Luna tried her best to sooth Serenity's wounded pride, back at the castle the four Princesses of the Inner Court were keeping themselves occupied. Princess Venus came into the castle kitchen wearing her white fuku top with white shoulder armor, an orange bow on her chest and red stripes running along the sides of her top. Her bottom was a small blue dress with red trim and black shoes with ankle straps, and around her waste she wore her chain of hearts. She found Princess Jupiter wearing a beautiful green silk kimono provided her by Lord Gurio and Lady Naru, sipping tea from an earthen cup.

The Senshi Princess of Thunder and Courage raised an eyebrow at seeing her fellow princess in battle attire, "Are you planning on a fight?" Jupiter asked.

Venus smirked, "I'm the head of the Inner Court," she answered, "I'm duty-bound to always be on-guard."

"Of course," Jupiter answered as she took another sip of her tea. "Would you like some?" she offered, "It would be no trouble to fix you a bit."

"Tea sounds nice," Venus answered.

Princess Jupiter took some tea leaves and placed them at the bottom of a cup for her fellow royal. "By the way," she said as she poured hot water into the cup, "I understand you were there to receive Mars when she arrived yesterday. How was Her Holiness?"

"Distant."

Jupiter looked up at that to see a sad look in Venus' normally cheerful blue eyes, "Venus, I..."

"Please," Venus interrupted, "Spare me. She has her duty, I have mine. Let's just leave it at that."

Jupiter looked at her friend silently for a few seconds before slowly nodding her head and passing her cup of tea to her. As they both drank in silence, in another room of Lord Gurio's small castle Mercury played a game of checkers with Mars. The Princess of Wisdom was dressed in a semi-formal ice-blue gown that was not quite as fancy as the one she'd worn in the Moon Palace the day before. As she waited for her opponent to make her move, Artemis strode in.

"Lady Mercury, Your Holiness, have either of you seen Venus?"

"I think I saw her headed for the kitchen," Mars answered. Once Artemis left, Mercury leaned forward over the game board, "Your Holiness, have you had the chance to work things out with Venus yet?"

Mars ignored the question as she moved her red piece. Mercury moved hers, and Mars took her piece. "Your Holiness," Mercury said softly, "She still loves you."

Mars let out a heavy sigh, "I know," she admitted, "But we all know it can never be."

"I know," Mercury said sympathetically, "Your holy vows. Your Holiness, just what would happen if you renounced them?"

"Well, first I'd have to renounce my holy position, then I would be stripped of the royal Martian crown and would become a commoner. I'd quite possibly be banished from my home world as well..."

"Venus would accept Your Holiness into her home planet," Mercury pointed out hopefully.

Mars looked up at Mercury, "I am the Princess of Mars," she said, "I am also the High Priestess and Oracle of the Solar System. I can't simply ask to renounce all that because I find the demands of celibacy and perpetual virginity to be difficult. Fate has demanded this of me, and no one, not even I, can defy the fates. Now please, let's change the subject."

Mercury lowered her eyes, "I'm sorry Your Holiness."

Mars sat back in her chair, "It's alright," she said. "Anyways, how are you and Lady Jupiter doing?"

Mercury looked surprised, "How did Your Holiness know..."

"I'm an oracle, remember?" Mars said.

Mercury blushed as she looked down at the game board, "Well, we were going to wait until the end of the week to announce our intentions."

"Indeed?" Mars asked, "So who asked who?"

"She asked me last spring. We were hoping Your Holiness would perform the ceremony."

"Of course, it would be an honor," she answered. After a few more minutes of playing, she looked outside a nearby window, "Where's Serena? She should've been back by now."

Mercury looked outside as well, "Don't worry," she said reassuringly, "I'm sure everything's fine. If she needed us, she would've sent for us."

"You're probably right," Mars said thoughtfully, "Besides, I sensed no sort of danger when we arrived. I'm sure she's fine, just like you said."

--

Naru hurried along the path as fast as her feet could take her. It had taken awhile to get back to the castle, grab more fish food, and rush back. As she ran along with the food, a petite white figure with large mouse-like ears jumped out from behind a bush, causing the auburn-haired wife of the daimyo to let out a surprised screech of fright.

"Luna," Princess Serenity said as she heard the cry, "What was that?"

"We should call the others," the black cat advised.

"No time," the princess said, clutching her Moon Rod in her hand as she ran towards the noise, "Whoever it is sounds close."

"Serena, wait!" Luna cried as she ran after her. The princess ran faster as she heard a much louder, painful scream, taking off from the ground as translucent wings formed from her back. Coming over a small hill, she saw a nasty looking small woman dressed in a white outfit, with large mouse ears sticking out of the top of her head. In front of her knelt Lady Naru, a flower opening out of her forehead with a silver crystal floating above its petals. As the crystal turned black, the strange woman pouted.

"Aw... And I thought for sure that an aristocrat like her would've had a Star Seed," she said disappointedly.

"Stop right there!" Princess Serenity shouted, "What are you doing to Lady Naru?"

The mouse-like woman turned to look at her, "Oh goodness! You're a Senshi, too?" she asked.

Serenity was caught off guard, "Another Senshi?" The princess narrowed her eyes as she stepped forward, "Who are you?"

The stranger smiled smugly, "I'm Senshi Iron Mouse." Looking back over at Naru, her smile widened, "I'm finished with today's business. Would you like to play with the phage?"

Before Princess Serenity had time to react, Naru became encircled in strands of dark energy. Her form changed, her eyes turning a shade of blood-red as fish scales formed all over her body. Her now webbed fingers ended in claws, and a pair of gill slits appeared just behind her jaw line."

"Senshi fishmonger!" the phage cried out.

"N... Naru?" Serenity gasped.

"Everyone who looses the brightness of their Star Seed becomes a phage," Iron Mouse chuckled as a diminutive pup tent appeared behind her. Quickly entering the tent, she called out "Have fun!" as both she and the tent disappeared.

"Wait!" Princess Serenity exclaimed.

"You don't look so healthy, princess," the phage said, "Maybe you should add some **fish oil** to your diet!"

Serena looked questioningly back over to the thing that was once Naru. She had just enough time to duck out of the way as the phage shot a mucous-like, oily translucent substance at her. It landed on a patch of grass, which instantly turned brown and withered.

"Luna, look out!" Serenity shrieked as she grabbed her advisor and leapt out of the way of another of the phage's disgusting attacks.

"Serena, you have to fight her!" Luna yelled, the royal advisor starting to panic.

"I can't!" Serenity cried, "She used to be Lady Naru!" The princess heart was beating rapidly now as she quickly tried to figure out her options. As she was gearing up to avoid yet another new attack, both she and the phage suddenly heard the sound of fingers snapping. Turning her head, Princess Serenity saw three figures dressed in skintight black outfits standing on a large rock near the woods.

"Penetrating the darkness at night..."

"The air of freedom breaks through..."

"We are the three sacred shooting stars..."

"Senshi Star Fighter!"

"Senshi Star Maker!"

"Senshi Star Healer!"

"Senshi Starlights... Are here!"

Serenity looked at the three newcomers in disbelief. "More Senshi?"

"Ah, more unhealthy specimens," the phage said as she readied to attack the three newcomers. Before she could though, the Senshi who called herself Star Fighter stepped forward.

"Star serious laser!" she yelled out as a focused light blast shot forth from her hand, striking the phage and causing it to cry out in pain. The thing collapsed as smoke rose from its body.

Star Fighter looked gravely down at her adversary, "I'm sorry," she said as she prepared to deliver a death blow, "This is the only way I know to bring you comfort now."

"No!" Princess Serenity cried, placing herself between the phage and the Starlights, "Don't kill Naru!"

Star Fighter looked surprised. "You," she whispered, recognizing the woman she'd seen earlier on the bridge.

Noting that her leader seemed at a loss, Star Healer spoke up. "It's too late now. The 'Naru' you knew is already dead."

"Once humans become a phage, we can't save them." Star Maker added.

"Right... Except that person..." Starfighter muttered. She quickly focused her attention back on the phage behind the princess. "Now go away," she ordered.

"No," Serenity said defiantly.

"Go away!"

"No!" the princess yelled, the yellow crescent moon on her forehead shining brightly upon the three Senshi. She didn't know what she could do, or how, but she knew she couldn't simply allow her new friend to die, not like this. In the moment of concern and fear for Naru, the Spiral Heart Moon Rod she'd been clutching glowed a bright pink and changed shape in her hands.

She faced the phage, the creature was still kneeling on the ground immobilized by Star Fighter's attack. "Kami-sama," she whispered, "Give me the words." Twirling the newly transformed wand in her hands, she aimed it at the thing and blurted out the first words that came to mind.

"Starlight honeymoon therapy kiss!"

There was a flash of pink light, followed by a strong wind and what looked like thousands of white feathers flowing around the phage. The creature stretched out her arms and shrieked, "Beautiful!" In an instant, the creature turned to Naru again, the flower once more appearing out of her forehead as the black crystal was restored to its original silver color. The crystal floated back down into the flower, which then closed its petals up and was absorbed back into Naru's forehead. The young wife of the daimyo fell to the ground unconscious. Serenity quickly ran to her, holding her new friend tightly in her arms as she looked over her shoulder.

The Senshi Starlights were gone.

"Serena," Luna asked, "Is she alright?"

"I think so," the princess answered. "Go back and tell Jupiter that Naru fainted. Ask her to come back here and help me get Naru-chan back to the castle. Don't tell her or the others any more than that though."

"What? But Serena..."

"Until we know more what's going on, I'm not sure it wise to discuss too much about this. Now hurry," she said, cradling Lady Naru's head in her lap as the cat ran off.

--

Several hours later, long after Jupiter and Princess Serenity managed to get Naru back home and in bed, the last of the castle's servant blew out the last lantern, casting all in darkness as all slept soundly. Outside the castle, three men quickly snuck onto the grounds. They wore the rough common clothes of the peasantry, and on their foreheads they wore upside down inverted crescent moons made of soot and charcoal. One carried what looked like a scarecrow while another carried a large rolled-up sheet of white cloth. As the third member of the group acted as lookout, his two companions quickly climbed up into a large tree behind the castle.

--

Princess Jupiter woke up the next morning early, hoping to surprise her hosts and fellow royals by fixing them a large breakfast. She was a Senshi, a warrior, only when she had to be. Back at her home on Io and when she visited the royal court on the Moon, she loved nothing better than to be in a kitchen, making delicious meals for herself and her friends, especially for her Mercury. Once, long ago, she'd loved Nephrite, and had her heart broken when he betrayed her and her Queen. It was Mercury who helped to heal her broken heart, and it was Mercury who showed her she could love again.

She remembered that there was a pile of firewood behind the castle, and walked around the building to grab some to heat the stove with.

That's when she saw it.

It was a large cloth banner hanging up from the branches of a tree, on the top of which were written the names of Queen Beryl and the four Shittenou. Under the names, in bold calligraphy, it read "Remember our martyrs, down with the Moon Whore!"

Next to the banner was a figure made of tree bark, rope and straw to look like Princess Serenity, hung in effigy from an outlying branch.

Princess Jupiter was aghast; who could've possibly written something so vile about Serena, or wish harm to such a sweet princess, wife and mother? Hearing a horrified gasp behind her, she turned to see Lady Naru exiting the back of the castle, a mortified expression on her face as she looked from the banner to the princess. "M... My lady," she stammered out, "I'm terribly sorry, I don't know how this could've happened."

Jupiter walked over to the daimyo's wife, "Naru-san, why? Why would anyone do this?"

"They are probably separatists, my lady," she answered, adding, "I'm so sorry. This has brought dishonor upon my household..."

"Not if no one else ever sees it," Jupiter answered as she turned away from Naru and focused her attention on the banner again. "My guardian Jupiter," she said as she crossed her arms before her chest and extended her index and pinky fingers, "Brew a storm! Call the clouds! Bring down the lightning!" With that, storm clouds appeared in the sky seemingly out of nowhere as a small rod extended from her princess' tiara.

"Supreme Thunder!" she cried out as lighting shot down from the sky, struck the rod, and passed through the princess and out of her extended arms. In a flash it struck both the banner and the effigy, burning them to ashes and leaving dark scorch marks behind on the tree itself.

"Say nothing of any of this to the others," Jupiter said as she turned back around to face Naru, "The dishonor was not yours anyways, but whoever it was that hung that up there."

Naru stared wide eyed at the tall princess before her. True, she knew the stories passed down about how powerful the Moon Kingdom was, but to physically see a woman stand not ten feet away from you call down lightning and then send it out under her control was more than a little bit frightening. "Yes, my lady," she whispered, "I'll tell no one."

Jupiter watched as the now fearful Naru hurried back into her husband's castle. She then picked up several pieces of firewood from the pile and headed back inside herself. Later, everyone made it a point to compliment the princess on the fine breakfast she fixed for them all.

Everyone except Naru, who remained strangely quiet throughout breakfast and most of the rest of the morning.

-To Be Continued-

--

End Notes: This series may have more of a manga or PGSM feel to it than the anime version, and that's largely due to the manga having much more information about the Silver Millennium than the anime, and the fact that I liked some of the characterizations of the live action version better than the anime. Also, this is an alternate reality, and I find that by basing my characterizations more on both the manga and the live action PGSM versions of Sailor moon I'm able to get an effect where the characters feel familiar but just a tad bit off. Venus, for example, is based almost solely on her PGSM incarnation, with the only carryover from her anime version being her occasional slip-up of a saying (and yes, her Senshi uniform is that of Sailor V, with the chain of hearts belt coming from PGSM). Mars is a combination of her PGSM version, the Oracle of Delphi, and the Pope, whereas Pluto is solely her manga version, down to her belt of keys they left out of the anime.

I'm glad everyone's enjoying the series, and I hope to have the next update up soon And don't worry, the Outers as well as Queens Serenity and Nehelenia will have much more of a role next time.


	4. Chapter 4

-Starfall-

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of the Sailor Moon franchise, which is probably a good thing in more ways than one.

--

-III-

The Princess of Ruin and Birth found herself once more in the lush garden outside the palace, closing her eyes as she inhaled deeply of the fragrances surrounding her. It was early morning, and she cherished the moments before the kingdom would wake and the third day of public celebrations would begin. Instead of the dark purple royal gown she'd been wearing for the public, Saturn wore the light blue nightgown she'd slept in, the grasses still damp with early morning dew beneath her bare feet.

There was something paradoxical about a woman powerful enough to destroy half the solar system and herself with a single attack moving gingerly among the delicate flowers, and if Saturn herself had given it any thought she might've even laughed at the irony of it as well. She wasn't thinking about quirks of irony at the moment though, not when she'd reached her favorite part of the garden. Blossoming chamomiles, yellow roses and tall sunflowers greeted her smiling face, her violet eyes taking in the yellows and gold of the flowers spread out before her.

Yellow and gold, just like her hair...

"Looks like I'm not the only one up this early."

Saturn turned with a start to see Lady Neptune standing next to some azaleas, her dark blue eyes looking curiously at her fellow royal. She wore a light green robe over a white nightgown, and her hair was pulled loosely up in a bun. "Neptune, I... I thought I was alone..."

"So I guessed," she said, noting the flowers the Princess of Silence seemed so mesmerized by. Like Her Holiness the Priestess-oracle of Mars, Neptune had innate psychic abilities which allowed her to sense danger and, sometimes, to see beneath the still waters of surface appearances, allowing a glimpse of the storms that sometimes existed deep beneath the seeming calm. It was never spoken of between them, but Neptune knew, and somehow Saturn was aware that she knew, that she loved someone from afar. Someone she could never have, someone already in love with another.

Neptune broke the awkward silence, "Do you suppose their royal highnesses Serenity and Nehelenia are awake yet?"

Lady Saturn turned a slightly amused glance towards the palace. "They're awake, but I wouldn't disturb them just yet if I was you. Their curtain is drawn."

Lady Neptune smiled. Soon after Queens Nehelenia and Serenity fell in love, while they were being intimate, it was discovered that when Serenity climaxed the yellow crescent on her forehead gave forth a blindingly bright golden light. After one embarrassing incident where several palace guards stormed into the bedroom with buckets of water to put out what they thought was a blazing fire, dark blue curtains were hung in the windows of the royal bedroom. The sight of the curtains pulled across the royal window still elicited the occasional snicker from those in the know.

Saturn studied her friend's face, "Neptune, is something wrong?"

Neptune crossed her arms as she walked closer. "I don't know. I... I have a feeling. My intuition says that something isn't right somewhere. It's probably nothing though."

Saturn looked at Neptune with concern. She knew the Princess well enough to know not to be dismissive of the aqua-haired woman's intuition. "Are you sensing any sort of danger?"

"I'm not sure. Again, it's nothing I can put a finger on just yet. It almost feels like something is, well, like something's missing."

"Missing? Neptune, have you discussed this with Lady Uranus?"

"No, and to be honest I probably shouldn't have even discussed this with you either. At least not until I have a better handle on what I'm feeling."

"Neptune," a husky voice called over. Both princesses looked over to see Lady Uranus walking over in a pair of pajamas, the sandy blonde holding out a cup of warm tea to her lover. "When I woke up and found you missing, I looked out here and saw you with Lady Saturn."

"Yes," the aqua-haired Princess of Deep Waters answered as she accepted the tea, "We were just talking." Neptune put her hand in the crook of Uranus' arm, and together they walked back to the palace.

Saturn watched them walk together into the palace, a bittersweet smile on her face. Ladies Uranus and Neptune had found their soul mates in one another, just as Serenity had in Neherenia, Serena had in Endymion and, she suspected, just as Princess Mercury had in Princess Jupiter. The Princess of Silence brushed her hair back with the edge of her hand. Perhaps she was like Lady Pluto or Her Holiness, the Priestess-oracle of Mars. Perhaps she was destined to be alone.

She shook herself out of her melancholy as Neptune's words once more came back to haunt her. Something was missing? What could that possibly mean?

Just then, she saw something small and grey moving amongst the sunflowers. "Diana?" she asked as the kitten stepped out towards her, "I didn't expect you to be up this early too."

"I'm a cat, Saturn-sama," Diana pointed out, "We're nocturnal. Saturn-sama," the kitten said as she came closer, "You look ill at ease.

What's wrong?"

Saturn smiled sadly, "Nothing, honest."

The kitten tilted her head, "That's just what Pluto-sama said."

"Pluto-sama? What's wrong with Lady Pluto?"

"I'm not quite sure," she admitted, "She can't tell me, because it hasn't happened yet."

Saturn focused more intently on the kitten, "What hasn't happened yet?"

"The warning that she doesn't know about because it hasn't occurred yet," the kitten tried to explain, "Since it has yet to happen, she doesn't know anything about it."

Saturn looked perplexed, "Diana, you're not making any sense. If Pluto doesn't know about a warning that hasn't happened yet, how do you?"

"Because Pluto-sama told me about it," Diana admitted.

Saturn looked silently at the small kitten for several seconds before she stood up and pulled her henshin wand out of a pocket in her nightgown. With a wave of her hand she was bathed in a dark purple light. As the light subsided, her nightgown had been replaced with a fuku similar to that of Princess Venus. Her top was white with dark purple armor over her shoulders, with petal-shaped white sleeves sticking out beneath it. She had a maroon bow on her back, a star-shaped brooch upon her chest, and white gloves trimmed in dark purple that ended above her elbow. Her purple skirt reached down to just above her knees, where they met a pair of long, laced purple boots. Her Silence Glaive, appearing during the transformation, was clutched in her hand.

"Saturn-sama?" Diana asked, "What's happening? Why are you dressed for battle?"

Saturn didn't answer. She was already headed out of the garden. She knew of three, possibly four beams of light that had entered the solar system roughly six months back that Nehelenia, Endymion and herself had agreed to keep to themselves. She knew of Neptune's intuition that something was missing, something that was obviously important enough to register psychically with the Princess of Affinity. And now it seemed that Lady Pluto, who was damn-near omniscient, knew of some sort of warning that would occur soon.

Saturn frowned. There were too many secrets being kept from too many people, and too many puzzle pieces she was now aware of. She couldn't see the pattern yet, or how all the pieces fit together in the bigger picture, but she knew that if she was going to be able to figure it all out she had to see the Guardian of Time.

--

Two hundred and thirty-eight thousand, eight hundred and fifty-seven miles away, Iron Mouse sat in one of the branches of a large oak tree overlooking the commercial center of Edo, looking at the busy city through a telescope. She had failed to recover a Star Seed for her mistress, and she knew only too well what the price of failure was.

As she continued to scan the men and women before her, watching as several fishing boats came in to port, something fell on the top of her head with a clang. "Ow!" she shrieked, nearly loosing her balance and falling out of the tree, "What the..." her voice died off as she saw the tin cup hanging from a string, the string itself disappearing into the foliage above her. Nervously swallowing, she brought the tin can up to her mouth. "Did you call, Madam Galaxia?" she asked before bringing the cup up to her ear.

"Sailor Iron Mouse, did you find a true Star Seed?"

"N... No, not yet. But a human with a brilliant Star Seed will almost certainly been found soon, and..."

"I'll be expecting good news," the voice said on the other end of the line attached to the can, an undercurrent of menace evident in her voice. "To dominate all the galaxies, get a true Star Seed as soon as possible!"

"Yes, your Majesty," she answered as the cord was yanked upward and disappeared.

--

Back on the moon, in the semi-darkness of the royal bedroom, Serenity and Nehelenia lay together upon a sumptuous bed, their fingers entwined as their foreheads touched together. Nehelenia reached up to ever so tenderly to trace the outside of her love's lips, moving forward as she did so to kiss her closed eyelids. After the past two days of celebrations and public ceremonies that left them both too exhausted to do much of anything other than sleep at the end of the day, they'd given orders to let them sleep in this morning.

Although, at the moment, sleep wasn't exactly what was paramount on their minds.

"Aishiteru," Queen Serenity whispered, cupping the side of her lover and best friend's face as the two kissed. The kiss deepened as they wrapped their arms around one another, their wings covering their naked bodies as black and white feathers gently brushed against one another.

From outside the room, the sounds of several trumpets sounded, followed by cheering and loud music. "Serenity," Nehelenia said as she broke the kiss, "The celebrations have begun once again. It must be getting late in the morning."

Serenity Sighed, "We should probably be getting up then, shouldn't we?" she asked reluctantly.

Nehelenia laughed warmly as she and her wife separated and dressed. A few minutes later the two monarchs left the royal bedroom and walked side by side down the corridor leading to the throne room. On their way, they passed by a member of the palace staff who immediately bowed to the two queens.

Serenity smiled, "Kenji, it's good to see you up and about so soon after your stomach flu."

The staff member returned the smile, "Your highness is very kind to think of me."

"Kenji," Neheenia interrupted, "Is there any news from the observatory?"

"Yes your majesty. The Princess and the Inner Court arrived safely yesterday, and they signaled us immediately upon their arrival."

"And my son-in-law and grandchild?" Serenity asked.

"Well..." Kenji answered hesitantly, "To be honest, there's been no word from them yet."

"No word?" the silver-haired queen asked in concern as she exchanged a worried glance with Nehelenia. The Dark Queen put a consoling hand on her shoulder.

"They must've been busy with receptions and ceremonies," Nehelenia suggested reassuringly, "They only arrived yesterday, and it's still early. I think it's too soon to panic yet."

Serenity forced a smile, though her eyes were still troubled. "Let me know the moment you receive a signal," she said to Kenji.

"Let us _both_ know," Nehelenia added, "She's my granddaughter too."

"At once, your majesties," Kenji said with a bow as the two monarchs once more made their way to the throne room.

--

The woman was beautiful, with a long mane of white hair and light blue eyes. As children danced around the maypoles and adults danced to music provided by the many bands and musicians in the square around her, she turned away from the dark castle and headed towards one of the vendors selling food.

"Hello," the portly owner of the stand said, his mustache curled up at the ends and his hair slicked back, "You're a stranger here, aren't you?"

The young-looking woman smiled, "How could you tell?"

"Well, it was obvious from the way you were looking at the Dark Moon Palace. You had the look of a tourist about you, from the White Moon Kingdom no doubt. Now that there," he said, leaning on his food stand as he pointed at the structure, "Is the palace of Queen Neherenia, but she's not there now."

"Oh?"

"No, see she's over today at the other celebration, the one on the other side of the moon with the royals. You know; Queen Serenity, the great warrior Uranus, the all-powerful Saturn, Pluto, the Guardian of Time, Neptune..."

"Great warrior? All-powerful?" the woman repeated nervously, "Oh, oh dear..."

"Miss, is something wrong, you look pale? Can I get you something?"

"Yes, I'll have some of that," she said as she pointed to some of the hot food in his stand. "This isn't going to be easy," she murmured as he handed her the food, "I'm so nervous that I've become... _hungry_."

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?" an angry voice yelled over. Both the woman and the vendor turned to see a dusky-skinned brunette come over, looking irate. "Oh," the white-haired woman said softly, part of her food still hanging out of her mouth, "It's you, Lead Crow."

Lead crow angrily grabbed the other woman by the arm and dragged her down a side street away from eavesdroppers, "Karasuma! That's my name here, so be careful not to call me by my real name."

"Then, Miss Karasuma?"

"Yes?"

"Do you want some soduka?" she asked, holding her plate out to the befuddled brunette.

Lead Crow's face fell, "How sad. Aluminum Siren, you used to compete with me for the position of number one in the animamates. Now, you've been transferred to this small hunk of rock out on the frontier, and I've lost another of my eternal rivals."

"Congratulations!" Aluminum Siren said cheerfully, eliciting an angry groan from Lead Crow.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked, trying to figure out if her rival's ditzy personality was an act or real, "You're supposed to be looking for Star Seeds here on this moon while Galaxia and the other animamates are on that nearby small bluish-green planet."

"Well then, why are you here?"

"I came here because I'm worried about you, my rival," she said exasperatedly. "Damn! I wonder how such a slow girl really is my eternal rival..."

"I'm sorry about that," Aluminum Siren sighed as she ate more of her food.

"Anyway, you should take your task more seriously. Have you found where there are Star Seeds?"

"Oh yes. I know where there are several."

Lead Crow looked shocked, "Y... You do?" she asked incredulously.

Aluminum Siren smiled happily as she nodded her head. "Yes, they're on the other side of this moon, but they sound very powerful, and we'll be greatly outnumbered. There's a great warrior, another whose all-powerful, two queens, someone who seems to control time, and..."

"Damn," Lead Crow growled, "We'd need an army to fight against people like that..."

"Well," Aluminum Siren said as she finished off her plate, "Why don't we just turn everyone here into phages? Then we'd have an army, wouldn't we?"

Lead Crow's eyes widened as her lips curled up into a smile. "Now you're sounding like the rival I remember, I... Siren?" she now asked suspiciously, "Just where did you get this information anyways?"

"Oh, the street vendor who gave me the food told me." Aluminum Siren confessed.

"Gave you the... Siren, vendors don't just give food, you have to pay for it, you..."

"You!" an annoyed portly man called over as he came up to the two women, "You stole that food from me without paying! I want my money!"

Lead Crow narrowed her eyes, "Let's start with him."

"Alright," Aluminum Siren said. All at once, both women removed their disguises.

"W... What's this?" the vendor asked.

Lead Crow smiled wickedly at him, "The beginning of the end," she said, cackling viciously as two fiery balls of light shot forth from her wrists into the merchant, causing him to change.

"Senshi Street Seller!" the phage called out. As he began run off in the direction of the White Moon Kingdom, Aluminum Siren and Lead Crow went back out into the crowded square, the joy and laughter of the citizens turning into fear and screams for help as the two began to raise the rest of their army.

--

She brushed the comb through her luxuriant dark-green hair, noting the luster as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. She had to look her best for the crowds she wouldn't greet this morning. She straightened her long black gloves, wanting to be immaculate for the queens who would shortly be wondering where she was.

She brushed a piece of lint off her form fitting black gown that Uranus wouldn't be eyeing, and that Neptune wouldn't later admit to being envious of. Outside, she could hear the teeming throngs of the citizens she wouldn't be greeting this morning out on the terrace with Serenity and Neherenia. As a figure silently stalked into the room behind her, she turned around to face the confrontation she'd known was coming.

"Oh, Lady Saturn!" she said as she jumped in surprise, "You startled me..."

"I doubt that," Saturn quipped, earning an odd glance from Pluto, "We both know how much you see in your Time Gate, so let's drop the façade."

"I see," Pluto said as she took in Saturn's clothing, "You're not wearing your gown. Are you preparing for battle?"

"I hope not."

"Come again?"

"Six months ago, four beams of light shot into our solar system from the outer reaches of space. Earlier this morning Neptune told me her intuition warned her something was missing, and now I understand you're telling kittens about warnings before they happen. Neptune may not know what's going on, but you do. You're the Princess of Change and Revolution, and past, present and future are all the same to you."

The sounds of music and of cheering came in the room from outside as the other royals made their appearance. "Saturn," Pluto asked impatiently, "Can't we discuss this after the ceremonies?"

"I'm sorry, but no," Saturn answered, "Because all things seem to point to one conclusion; the Moon Kingdom will soon be in some sort of danger. Pluto, if you know what's happening please, tell me."

Pluto closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, "You know I'm forbidden from doing so. I wish I could help, but..."

"Pluto," Saturn said in an almost pleading tone, "You're one of my oldest and dearest friends. We fought alongside one another in the past, and no one understands your burden and the loneliness of it as much as I do. But if the Kingdom is in danger, my duty is to the Monarchy and the Moon Kingdom first. I don't want to push this old friend, but for the Kingdom and the Court I will if I have to. Please don't make this any harder than it has to be. Please, just tell me what I need to know."

Pluto narrowed her eyes as she glared at her fellow Outer, "This conversation is over," she said, her voice betraying her annoyance, "I'm leaving." With that, she turned on her heels to walk out of the room.

"**Silence Wall!**"

Pluto stopped dead in her tracks as a dark barrier appeared between her and the door. Turning quickly, she found that Saturn had deliberately positioned herself between her and the Time Staff, and that she was aiming her Silence Glaive directly at her. "Saturn, what do you think you're doing?" she demanded.

"I am the Senshi of Destruction," Saturn announced, "My guardian deity is the planet of silence. I am the Princess of Death and Rebirth, and I will not be denied!"

Pluto took a step back, "Lady Saturn, have you taken leave of your senses? You would threaten the Guardian of the Gates of Time?"

"To protect all that I love and hold dear from an unknown menace, _yes_," she answered.

"But... I can't! Don't you understand? Time must flow the way it's destined to, all must happen as has been predestined since before the first star ever even came into existence. I'm the Guardian of the Time Gate; it's my duty to see that all temporal events happen as they were meant to, I cannot..."

"I am Saturn, the Destroyer of Worlds," her fellow Princess interrupted in a dangerously low tone as she came closer with the Silence Glaive, "And one way or another, you **will **tell me what I need to know."

-To Be Continued-


End file.
